Leadership voters’ key concern as divided kingdom goes to polls

Outside a polling station in Birmingham's Northfield constituency, one voter, when asked how he had cast his ballot in the British general election, snapped, "With a cross," and walked off.

A divisive election campaign, a year after Britain voted to leave the European Union, and the polarising leaders of the two main political parties have made the outcome difficult to call.

Most voters who spoke to The Irish Times leaving the polling station at Northfield Methodist Church, about a half-hour drive southwest of Birmingham city centre, had voted Conservative or would not say how they voted but expected Tory leader Theresa May to be the next prime minister.

Even many of those voters acknowledged, though, that sitting Labour MP Richard Burden was a popular and hard-working constituency representative and had a strong chance of retaining his seat.

Northern Ireland: what you need to know about the election

---

Theresa May to form government with DUP support

---

Following UK election night? This is what you need to know

---

Birmingham Northfield is one of Labour's most vulnerable seats. Burden is defending a majority of just 2,509 and the United Kingdom Independence Party, who finished third in the 2015 election, won 7,106 votes that are floating in this general election with no Ukip candidate running.

Despite the campaign wobbles on her "strong and stable" boasts, Conservative voters here were swayed by their belief that May would be a stronger Brexit negotiator than Jeremy Corbyn.

“I just think that she will get the strongest Brexit for us,” said Charlotte Parry, a National Health Service worker who brought along her sons James and Ryan to the polling station.

“Due to Brexit, people are going to be more inclined to go with the Conservatives to get a better deal.”

Generational divide

Supermarket manager Ian Davis (50) and daughter Tara (18), a fashion design student, reflect the generational divide splitting Conservative and Labour voters.

“I have always been a Conservative – I’m not going to lie to you,” said Ian.

“When I look at Corbyn, I don’t think he is a particularly strong leader and she is more of a safe bet than he is. I do like Corbyn as a person but I think she is a bit stronger than him.

Tara likes the Labour leader’s plan for free college tuition fees as she is heading to university.

“I voted Labour because Jeremy Corbyn’s done better for younger people and I think the Conservatives are more for the older generation,” she said.

With these intra-family voting divisions in mind, Tara’s father thinks the result will be far closer.

“I don’t think she will win a landslide. I think Mr Corbyn is just behind her. I think it will be very close. I think he will probably hold on to the seat here, the Labour candidate,” he said.

The London and Manchester terror attacks have pushed Carol Warton (70), a retired nurse, to the Conservatives. She does not trust Corbyn, she says.

“I just hope Corbyn don’t get in because he will cause trouble for the country,” she said.

“He is going to let all the immigrants in. He is not going to punish Isis. I thought, are you mad? They are killing people and they are not going to punish them.”

Stephen Watt (23), a trainee accountant, says there have been problems here with the loss of car manufacturing jobs in nearby Longbridge that have encouraged Ukip’s policies of hate but he hopes that Labour will win here and nationally given how strong a campaign Corbyn ran.

“Labour has the best offers for young people when it comes to rent control, higher minimum wages, better worker rights. Labour is really there for us,” he said.

“May has had a rollercoaster, hasn’t she? She keeps trying to say that she is strong and stable but she can’t even debate Jeremy Corbyn. I mean really.”

Audrey Hawkins (89) said she has voted in every general election since she turned 18. She voted against Brexit because her six granddaughters asked her to but will not say how she voted this time: she likes the local Labour MP but not the party’s leader.

“It is going to be very tight,” she said. “I think it won’t be Corbyn.”